New Here - Don't Know Where To Turn!

[Kris78]

Hi everyone,

My first post! I'm brand new here, and very new to everything art-related too. I try my best to do pencil sketches, and I've just bought a Wacom tablet for work and would love to also use it to do some digital painting.

I'm struggling to know where to start, though. I guess I'm looking for a kind of beginner's art course (ideally focusing on basic sketching and digital painting). Is there such a thing?

The videos here look great, but they also look for more established artists. So are there any "video" lessons/courses/programs here to buy, or perhaps another resource you could recommend?

Thanks a lot in advance for any advice!

[Amagumo]

I'm kind of in the same boat as you I want to get better at drawing but some times feel confused where to start or what I should do first. First I would make a list of things you want to be able to draw and then set goals for your self. here you can check out my thread and take a look and see what i'm doing to see if it gives you some idea where you should start.

http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=147769

[Kris78]

Amagumo, thanks for the link. I just checked it out and there is lots of good info for me as a beginner! I like your drawings too :) You're a few steps ahead of me. I'm a real beginner!

Are there any *video* lessons anywhere here, or online? Lessons that are very basic, and intended for absolute beginners? I'm using videos I find on YouTube so far, but they aren't the best to learn from...

[Grief]

a good place to start would be the community mentoring (http://www.conceptart.org/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=137) section of the forums. there you will find forum members who will act as 'mentors' giving out free lectures and assignments.

look through the open 'classes' and join in, ask around and don't be afraid to post questions and your work to get feedback. CA is about helping you grow as an artist, it doesnt matter what skill level youre at, the only requirement is that you want it to better your art.

[J Wilson]

I'm not aware of any videos dedicated to absolute beginners, but there are hundreds of books and forum threads on the topic. The most basic tips are "just draw" and "work from the big basic shapes down to the specific details." I won't go into more detail because this topic is probably THE most common question that gets asked, and it's been answered in detail hundreds of times. Poke around this forum and try a few searches and I'm sure you'll find a ton of great advice.